On Saturday, May 30, foster children received free haircuts at Parlour ‘73 in the Battle Ground Village through a partnered event between the salon and local nonprofit Cloth and Foster.
The event provided more than fresh trims and clean cuts, though.
Organizers said it was another way to support foster families while helping children feel valued and included in their community.
Cloth and Foster, a nonprofit founded by foster parents Brittany and Aric Clapp, serves children and families involved with foster care through five Southwest Washington counties. Brittany Clapp said the support program provides tangible items.
“It’s a vehicle to wrap families in a community, but also mostly remove barriers and provide a little bit more bandwidth,” she said. “So things like this event really do that tenfold. We get to wrap around and provide a service, which can be expensive if you have multiple kids in the home.”
The organization helps families obtain necessities such as clothing, beds, bedding and hygiene supplies, often during the first days after a child enters foster care.
“If my sister’s kiddo needed me, I, on a drop of a hat … would take them, but I might not have everything I need right away, right?” Brittany Clapp said. “So that’s where we step in and within the first 72 hours can provide beds and bedding and wardrobe because not everybody’s coming with a suitcase. We’re lucky if they would have clothes and shoes on with them.”
Aric Clapp said services that many families take for granted can make a significant difference for foster caregivers.
“That’s what we really strive for is if we can provide for those tangible items or anything we can remove off of a caregiver’s bandwidth; we call that the hard work because then you can focus on healing,” he said. “These kids have a lot of trauma. They’ve been through a lot of crazy experiences, and that’s a lot for a caregiver. So if you can remove the easy things like haircuts or clothes or a pair of shoes … a caregiver’s capacity goes up and the demand on their nervous system goes down, so they’re able to provide better care for kiddos.”
Parlour ‘73 owner Andrea Mills said her involvement with Cloth and Foster began about three years ago through a connection with Brittany Clapp.
“I have a client who I’ve had for a few years. Brittany is her niece, and she was talking about the organization, and it was around December, and she said they do giving trees,” Mill recalled from a few years ago. “I said, ‘Oh my gosh, are there trees available? We would love to put a tree up here with the gift giving tags for foster children.’”
Since then, the salon has participated in Cloth and Foster’s holiday programs, clothing drives and other efforts. Mills said the idea for free haircuts grew from conversations about needs foster families often face.
“That was the one thing (Aric) said that kids always look forward to is a good haircut,” Mills said. “He said it’s kind of odd. Sometimes it’s a new pair of shoes, but we get a lot of requests or haircuts. It’s just something that no matter who you are, it makes you feel good to have a fresh, clean cut.”
Throughout the day on May 30, each stylist focused on making each child feel welcome and cared for. Mills said to know that there is a team of people willing to give their day to help foster kids is special.
“We talked about it afterwards and we had no words,” she added. “Just to see their faces, the excitement.”
Even simple trims had a meaningful impact.
“A couple of girls, it was just a bang trim,” Mills said. “But to see that we were catering to them and not rushing them through a system, or to know that there is a team of people here that cared about how they felt and what they wanted. We asked them, ‘What are we doing for you today?’Just like a paying client. … It was very powerful.”
For Brittany Clapp, the event also demonstrated how community members can support foster children even if they are unable to become foster parents themselves.
“None of us would let a kid show up on our doorstep without doing something. We wouldn’t turn them away, right?” she said. “We all can’t be foster parents, and I get it. I don’t even know if I recommend it all the time, but we can all do something.”
Mills said the response from local hairstylists and barbers has already inspired plans for another event before the school year begins.
“We’re going to do another in August,” Mills said, adding that a date has not yet been set. “I had a lot of barbers and hairstylists reach out that wanted to volunteer their time. So that speaks volumes, too. So we’re going to do it for going back to school cuts.”
For more information on supporting Cloth and Foster and their efforts across Southwest Washington, visit clothandfoster.org.
